By willosweb

Our Where Are They Now Summer Series continues with our favorite past contestants from NBCs hit reality show The Biggest Loser. The premise of this series is simple asking the same set of questions to all participants getting honest answers in return.

To date his is the most humorous of all of our Interviews! Poppi Kramer is technically the first female to win a large money prize on the Biggest Loser in the United States. Having lost over 50% over her weight - AT HOME!! A true inspiration to us all, Poppi is following an organic die that helped lead her to her goal. Her main inspiration for losing weight  one I am sure we can all relate to So I can Breathe! Breathing easier these days  heres Poppi!


Poppi Kramer

Since leaving the show have you gained weight?

Have you found it relatively difficult to maintain?
I��m certain that by now everyone knows that the finale weight was merely 50 people completely devoid of any sort of liquid ANYWHERE in their bodies. We were ��pruned for television!�� I was 115 lbs for, oh, about TWO HOT HOURS!!! My actual weight the week of the finale (what I had lost naturally and with proper diet and exercise) was 125.5. Since leaving the show I got back up to 125 and kinda float between 126-129; the weight I was the week before the finale when i cut out ALL carbohydrates.

I learned that maintenance is MUCH more difficult than actually losing the weight. Not in the actual workouts per se, but more mentally. A comedian friend of mine said, ��You will never feel as fat as you do when you finally finish losing weight.�� That rang so very true for me. When I was 232 lbs what was another biggie fry order? 5 lbs here, 5 lbs there; when you��re that large you really don��t care. Now I get panicked if I start to feel a tightness in my jeans. The difference in me, though, is that now I have the tools to ��bang out a 3�� in a week. When I started the program, I thought, ��I��ll lose the weight, be on TV, and then go back to my old habits.�� That never happened. As difficult as it is to get up 6 days a week and drag my @ss to the gym, I do it. I have a picture of me at 232 lbs directly across from my bed. That��s motivation enough.

What sort of training plan are you following now?

Have you seen results?
I do cardio 6 days a week for AT LEAST one hour a day. Averaging about 6-10 hours of cardio a week. I run, use the eliptical, different fun kickboxing and dance dvds, etc. Then about 4 days a week I do circuit strength training, which is basically carving out muscle in an aerobic fashion.

I can absolutely see more definition in my arms and legs; my abs, however are encased in the delightful cocoon known as EXTRA SKIN!

What target/goals have you set for yourself?

I take it day by day, but right now I��m looking towards two things: 1. a follow up show where I��m helping teens fight obesity on Montel in November, and 2. my 1 year anniversary in dec. Since I��ve basically maintained the same weight (I really am more concerned with size��and I��m still a 2!!!), I��d like more definition; a sleeker body. Oh yeah, and to be cast on a sitcom. But that��s another story.

Can you tell me a little about your experiences on the ranch?

Best times?
Worst times?
What��s the ONE moment you��ll never forget?
best times- Getting sent home.

worst times Being at the ranch and seeing some of the food they were eating! I��m an organic snob��and it was all processed! Whole Foods save me!
Never forget- Standing on that scale and seeing that number 115 pop up. My goal initially was 135. When I hit it in September, I KNEW I wasn��t done. I gave myself a new goal (which I believed to be completely ridiculous and unattainable��): 116. That would be 50% weight loss. No one had ever done that on the show. When I saw that I surpassed it, it hit me live on national tv that for the first time, I had finished what I started.

Oh yeah, and when Bob saw me and said in a southern drawl, ��Yer TIIIIIIIIIIIIINY! Man! Yer TIIIIIIIINY!��

What type of support have you had in regards to dealing with the mental obstacles that come with obesity?

Do you feel overcoming these mental blocks have helped in maintaining your current health?
I am extremely fortunate in that I have the BEST family in the world. I still go home to my parents and have them gasp with delight when I walk through the door. Sometimes it��s tough in terms of personal identity and wanting to crawl back up into my fat to hide. My family and friends are right there to encourage me not to. Oh, and fans. The ones who come into the bar I work at and say, ��You look familiar. Did you have a fat sister who used to work here?�� That��s fun.

Every day is a challenge. And that��s how I take it. Just like any addict, foodies like myself have to keep on top of things. The difference between a food addict and say, a smoker or drinker is that we HAVE TO EAT TO STAY ALIVE! You can��t just stop eating cold turkey. Wait, you should always eat cold turkey. Just the white meat. Did I actually just make that joke? I��ve always loved to push myself, but usually in the wrong direction. I basically had to re-focus. I��m still learning how to love my life this way. So far, so good.

Do you feel better equipped to handle weight loss and maintenance after being on the show .. or do you feel the same?

I tried every diet on the market: Fatkins, Scan Diet, Cybergenics, Slim Fast, you name it! This was the first time I didn��t really feel like I was on a DIET. Cheryl Forberg (nutriionist) and Dr. Huizenga were instrumental in giving us the plans that ultimately would transfer over; I was never hungry, I enjoyed my food, and now, I just get to eat more of it. I feel that the 36 at home actually had an advantage: we were sent back to lose weight in the exact place we gained it��and we were SUCCESSFUL! After the show, we just continued to do what we were doing at home already. I imagine it must have been a greater challenge for the ranchers to come home after learning how to do it in isolation.

How was the transition from ��Reality TV Star�� to ��Real Life��

Wait, I��m a reality tv star??? Actually I tell people, ��I don��t wanna brag, but I��m a fringe reality tv celebrity. You should really let me cut you in line.�� Funny, it never works! Honestly, I cannot believe the amount of people who have contacted me. It��s amazing and I am dumbfounded by the wonderful things people have said. Many have made me cry. That��s right: a crying comedian. I have to say, I lost the weight for myself. But I��ve learned that when you do good and healthy things for yourself, people notice and become motivated. I enjoy that. It keeps me accountable not only to myself, but to many others.

Were you able to incorporate what you learned at the ranch into your everyday routine?

What is this ranch that you continue to speak of? Are there horses? I enjoy horseback riding, although I find myself sore the next day! {editors note �C OK �C you got me!! The questions were too generic for the at-home contestants! Sorry!! hahaha}

What��s the BIG lesson you learned from your experience with The Biggest Loser?

Honestly it��s a 3 parter:
1. I am in control of my life.
2. I can do ANYthing if I put my mind to it
3. Health IS important. Really. I could have cared less before!

What are you doing now? Work? Home? Life in General?

I��ve continued my comedy career, and, as I said, am working with the Montel Williams show as a correspondent of sorts and I am auditioning a lot commercially. I have been an actress my entire life��so my agents just flipped at the change! I really believe I saw dollar signs painted on one of their eyelids! Right now I am in negotiations to become part of the rotating cast of ��The JAP Show,�� an off broadway comedy show which pays homage to classic female comics. I am healthy, happy, and just still running within that hamster wheel known as the entertainment industry!

What��s your routine like now?

i. Exercise - 6-10 hours/week cardio; 3-4 hours/week circuit strength training
ii. Healthy Eating �C Both eating out and at home. Going out to a restaurant has become like an easter egg hunt. Truth be told, most restaurants have healthy choices which are DELICIOUS!!

Have you found a healthy - happy balance between maintaining a healthy lifestyle with your family life and maintaining your careers?

Absolutely. I don��t have children and am not married, but am very very satisfied. I even have a shirt that says so. My Mom bought it for me. We walked into the mall, saw the shirt that said, ��SATISFIED�� across the chest. She said, ��Are you?�� I replied, ��I AM, actually.�� ��So let��s take it!�� she responded. And we did.

I��m not any different from anyone else when it comes to weight loss. It��s not a quick fix, it doesn��t happen overnight. You just need to be consistent. Spontaneous, funny and quirky are ok too. Well, for me.

You can catch more of Poppi��s humor at her MySpace Page: www.myspace.com/poppikramer

As always, you can find all the Biggest Loser, Fat March, and MORE - reality news, scandal, spoilers and gossip at Willo��s Web - get real!

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